Hopkins

Justin is a pianist and vocalist with over a decade of experience in music education. Justin received his BA in Music Education from Queens College, where he developed a strong foundation in musical pedagogy and best practices. In the classroom, Justin excelled at creating engaging learning experiences for diverse learners through using scaffolding techniques and various learning aids—visual, kinesthetic, tactile, and aural. He firmly believes all students, regardless of prior knowledge or skill, can obtain a comprehensive grasp of music literacy.

Justin has spent most of his professional career as a Director of Music for various churches. Hailing from New York City, Justin was able to work with and direct highly skilled singers and instrumentalists for his job. He recently moved to the Twin Cities and is currently the Director of Liturgy and Music at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Wayzata, MN. He has a strong passion for sharing the joy of playing and understanding music. Outside of music, Justin enjoys swimming, working on cars, and spending time with his wife and his two children.

New to the Twin Cities, Emily is thrilled to share her musical knowledge with you. She began private lessons on the flute at 8 years old and practiced avidly while growing up in Idaho. While studying art in college, she constantly drew from the combination of discipline and expression she learned from her musical education. Emily finds a uniquely transportive experience whether playing the flute or piano which shapes her experience of the world. Her love of teaching comes from the opportunity to enable others to cultivate this experience. When she’s not teaching, Emily is making ceramics, listening or watching jazz performances, and enjoying the outdoors.

Joe has been playing guitar for over 15 years and has been teaching for over a decade. He is a well versed Guitar, Bass, Ukulele, Drums, and Piano instructor. He plays a variety of genres from funk/jam band to reggae to progressive metal. Joe graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at Saint Cloud State University and continued studying Guitar Performance at McNally Smith College. He has years of experience working with kids teaching private lessons and has owned and operated the Kracker Jacks Drumline since 2015. No matter the time of the day, Joe can be found spreading the word: “Music is a language we all know how to speak. Some of us just don’t know it yet.”

Guitar Repairs

Joe has been repairing guitars for nearly 10 years. His work covers everything from pickup mods, parallel/series wiring, to full refrets. Whether you need a cracked headstock glued, to deck out your Squier/Epiphone with upgraded parts, or just a restring/setup, Joe has you covered!